Category: Self-Compassion

Mark Nepo: Holding Nothing Back

Mark Nepo is a poet, philosopher, and spiritual teacher who is the author of numerous books and audio projects, including the New York Times #1 bestseller The Book of Awakening, which made the list of Oprah’s Ultimate Favorite Things. With Sounds True, Mark has published many books and audio courses, including Inside the Miracle: Enduring Suffering, Approaching Wholeness. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon has an intimate conversation with Mark about the two most important lessons he has learned from his journey with cancer, the role of effort and grace in our lives, what it means to take “the exquisite risk,” and how we can shift our perspective to see with the eyes of the heart.
(73 minutes)

Tehya Sky: A Ceremony Called Life

Tehya Sky is an author and metaphysical guide who focuses on the integration of our physical humanity and our innate divinity. With Sounds True, Sky has published the book A Ceremony Called Life: When Your Morning Coffee Is as Sacred as Holy Water. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Sky speak on how embracing our vulnerability leads to catharsis and personal revelation. Sky discusses her own journey to become an up-and-coming teacher, including the process of “deconditioning” she went through in order to step fully onto the spiritual path. Finally, Tami and Sky consider misconceptions of the path and how achieving a silent mind is not necessarily required for greater spiritual evolution. (63 minutes)

Jack Kornfield: Difficult Times & Liberation

Jack Kornfield is a world-renowned teacher and one of the key figures to introduce Buddhist mindfulness practice to the West. He is the author of many books and audio programs, including The Wise Heart and After the Ecstasy, the Laundry. In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Jack and Tami Simon discuss Buddhist views of how best to navigate periods of difficulty and heartache. Jack reflects on four decades of personal meditation practice and how this has informed how he works with students. Jack and Tami also explore insights into the nature of suffering, whether or not it is possible to be liberated even in spite of our neuroses, and what is meant by ”the crystal of liberation.”
(49 minutes)

Steven Hayes: Self-Acceptance and Perspective-Taking

Steven Hayes is a professor, the chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of Nevada, and the author of more than 35 books and 500 scientific articles. The cofounder of the acclaimed Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (known as ACT), Steven is a contributor to the Sounds True book The Self Acceptance Project: How to Be Kind and Compassionate Towards Yourself in Any Situation. In this episode of Insights of the Edge—which previously aired as part of an interview series on self-acceptance—Tami Simon and Steven discuss his experiences living with a panic disorder at a young age, and how his own bouts with anxiety shaped his clinical studies. They talk about the practice of perspective-taking and how it can be a powerful bulwark against self-recrimination. Finally, Steven offers his perspective on spirituality and how that perspective informs the core tenets of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.
(42 minutes)

Whatever Arises, Love That, Part 2

Matt Kahn is an author, spiritual teacher, and highly attuned empathic healer whose intuitive abilities allow him to bridge the mystical with the mundane. With Sounds True, Matt has created the book Whatever Arises, Love That: A Love Revolution That Begins with You and an upcoming online course of the same name. In the second part of their conversation on Insights at the Edge, Tami Simon and Matt talk about the connection between a sense of safety and the ability to truly live one’s life to its fullest. They also discuss the four kinds of inflammation the ego can experience when overstimulated, and how to work with these energetic reactions. Finally, Tami and Matt speak frankly about what he means by “the love revolution” and how the practice of loving oneself can uplift the entirety of the world.
(65 minutes)

Waking Up in Prison

Fleet Maull is an acharya—or senior mindfulness meditation teacher—in the Shambhala International Meditation Community. In 1989, Fleet founded the Prison Dharma Network—now called The Prison Mindfulness Institute—while serving a federal prison sentence. He is the author of the book Dharma in Hell: The Prison Writings of Fleet Maull and has founded several prisoner advocacy organizations. In this fascinating edition of Insights at the Edge, Fleet and Tami Simon discuss practices for dealing with regret and what it means to truly devote ourselves to the service of others. They also speak on Buddhist views of basic human goodness and how they helped Fleet to come to terms with his prison experience. Finally, Fleet talks about his vision for the reform of the American criminal justice system and the slow growth toward a more enlightened society. (72 minutes)